More Than A Friend
by Rule12H8r
Summary: Maura makes some observations that have brilliant mind at a loss. Jane helps her with reaching a conclusion. Rizzles. High School AU. Disclaimer: I don't own the show or the characters. Read, review, and enjoy!


**My first Rizzles fic. Let me know what you think! I know, for any of you that follow me, I am writing a high school story for NCIS too and I'm starting to get a little attached to the idea of a high school AU. I'll try to think of something more original next time, but this is all I've got for now. If you like it or hate it or are relatively neutral, just drop in a review because I'm not sure if I should continue this or not.**

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"It's stupid. Honestly. Just completely ridiculous." Jane thought to herself, sitting down on her bed with her backpack, pulling out her homework.

"How do I even think of these things? Really. It is just completely insane. No way." Jane ranted on with her inner monologue. But then her thinking continues, drifting as she graphed out algebra problems. Thoughts drifting to Maura still, always.

Maura was always on her mind. Right at the forefront of her very thought. Her best friend, had been since they met at freshman orientation 3 years ago. Now, as juniors they could finally go to prom. Neither of them having a date, they decided to go with friends, Jane, Maura and Frost.

Of course someone would say something, something about Jane, captain of the softball team, a total butch, has not had a lasting relationship in over a year, going to the prom with her best friend, the gorgeous, girly, femme, Maura Isles. It was just typical of some random jerk to say something like that.

Sure, maybe it was meant to be a joke, and maybe, just maybe, Jane was taking it too hard, but she could not help it. Now all she could think about, keeping her mind preoccupied for the entire school day, was Maura.

What it would be like for her and Maura to be together. What it would be like if her and Maura really were a couple, with Jane knew a big portion of their school already thought they were. What it would be like to get to go to the dance with Maura as more than friends. What it would be like to have Maura sleeping over that night, which she already was, and lay in the same bed with her, like they often did, only this time, Jane would be able to reach out and play with the soft honey blond curls sprawled across the pillow. To reach out, wrap her arms around the shorter girl's waist and pull her close. To lay like that, flush against each other and fall asleep in the comfort of each other's arms. In the comfort of each other's presence.

Jane could hardly believe where her mind had been wandering as she snapped back out of her trance to the ringing of her cell phone.

Maura. Of course.

Jane, as always, could never ignore a call from Maura, and in fact found herself grinning as she answered the phone.

"Rizzoli. What's up Maur?" Jane answered just before the second ring.

"Jane, can we talk, in person?" Maura asked.

"Sure, is everything alright?"

"I just need to talk to you. Face to face. It's, um, kind of important." Maura stuttering worried Jane. Maura was always so accurate and sure of herself, stuttering was just unlike her. It didn't fit in with her personality.

"Alright, when and where?"

"Would you please come downstairs and let me in?" Maura asked. Jane smirked, looking out of her apartment window to see Maura pacing back and forth on the sidewalk, looking up to Jane in the window when she did not answer. Maura gave a tentative smile. It was obvious to Jane that something was off with her.

"I'll be down in a minute." Jane hung up at that, dropping her phone on the bed and leaving her room, bypassing her brothers arguing in the living room and her mother in the kitchen.

"Hey Maur, are you okay?" Jane asked the moment she had the door open, allowing Jane inside the gate, through the lobby and to the stairs.

"Let's wait until we get to your room, if you do not mind." Maura suggested, Jane left it at that.

Her brothers were still arguing when they got upstairs, not even noticing their new guest. Maura hardly felt like a guest anymore in the Rizzoli household anyways. Maura stopped at the kitchen in front of Jane on the way to her room, popping her head in and greeting Angela.

"Are you staying for dinner?" Angela checked, wanting to know how much to cook. Maura looked uncomfortably around the room, avoiding Jane's eyes.

"I am not sure. It is possible, but I do not know how long I will be staying." Maura replied, receiving a nod before Jane and she reached Jane's bedroom at the end of the hall.

Maura sat down at the edge of Jane's bed, looking incredibly out of place. Maura was normally perfectly content in kicking of her heels, hanging her jacket over Jane's desk chair and laying back on the bed as if it were her own.

"Alright Maura. I need to know what's got you this bothered. I swear if it was that guy in chem. class screwing with you again I'll ki-" Jane ranted.

"No Jane," Maura interrupted. "it was nothing like that. This has nothing to do with him. This is, it is about you." Maura finally glanced back up, meeting Jane's eyes. Seeing the shock and fear there she ducked her head back down. Jane came to squat down in front of her friend, resting her hands on her knees.

"What did I do?" Jane asked, worriedly considering everything that had happened the past few days, trying to remember anything she could have done to knock her best friend this far off kilter. "I'm so sorry, whatever it is I swear I'll make it up to you. But what did I do?" Jane ranted, out loud this time.

Maura smirked a bit at how much Jane worried about her, reaching out to run a hand down over her wild curls, trailing down to rest on her shoulder. Then, looking into the troubled brown eyes, she pinched her eyes closed. No. Caring so much about Jane was what got her feeling completely wrecked like this in the first place, even if Jane had not intentionally done anything.

"You didn't do anything." Confusion etched into the anxiety of Jane's features. "Not intentionally anyways. You could not have known what you were causing because I did not share my reactions with you. I have made some observations and my results shocked me, scared me a bit to be honest. I think I like you Jane Clementine Rizzoli, as more than a friend."

Jane's hands squeezed Maura's knees and she stood, pulling her friend up with her, holding her hands between them once she was up.

"Are you sure?" Jane asked, receiving a confident nod, Maura would never share her thoughts before she was certain. She hated guessing. "Mind if I add my own observations?"

"More notes never hurt I suppose." Maura responded meekly, unsure of where this would lead.

"Well, some of the things I noticed were how you make me smile more than anyone I know. I noticed that you are always on my mind. I noticed that whenever I am down you are the only one I want to be around, and you always make it better. I noticed how stunning you are. I noticed how my heart beats a little faster when you are around, especially when you stand that extra bit closer to me than normal. I noticed the tingle I get when our arms brush when we walk together. I noticed that when someone mentioned us going to prom together I was mad at first, but then I realized how wonderful it would be to get to hold you and dance with you all night. My conclusion is that I think I really like you too, Maura Isles, as more than a friend." By the end of her little speech Maura was in complete awe, unable to allow herself to accept that her friend returned these feelings.

Maura, in slight shock, sat back down on the bed, still holding Jane's hands, tugging her to sit beside her.

"Really?" Maura asked, incapable of forming a full sentence. Jane nodded, leaning forward and giving Maura a light kiss on the cheek before smiling widely when Maura leaned into the gesture.

"Would you please be my date to the prom, Ms. Isles?" Jane asked, flashing Maura a thousand watt grin.

"I think I would love that Jane." Maura leaned forward kissing Jane's nose playfully.

Jane wrapped her arm tightly around Maura's waist, pulling her to her like she had been thinking about earlier. Maura kicked her shoes off on the ground before lifting her legs to lay down with Jane in the bed, flush against each other, feeling every beat of the other's heart, feeling breath of air in between them, Jane kept her arms around Maura's waist still, now tracing light patterns on the small of her back, with her face buried in the blond curls, breathing in the smell that was just uniquely Maura. Maura had her head tucked into Jane's neck, nuzzling in comfortably, her arm was now draped over Jane, one hand tracing up and down Jane's arm lightly.

"It's too bad." Jane broke their comfortable silence. "Frost is gonna have to go to prom all alone now."


End file.
